Nonstop flight route between Buka Island, Papua New Guinea and Knob Noster, Missouri, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from BUA to SZL:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- BUA Airport Information
- SZL Airport Information
- Facts about BUA
- Facts about SZL
- Map of Nearest Airports to BUA
- List of Nearest Airports to BUA
- Map of Furthest Airports from BUA
- List of Furthest Airports from BUA
- Map of Nearest Airports to SZL
- List of Nearest Airports to SZL
- Map of Furthest Airports from SZL
- List of Furthest Airports from SZL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea and Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL), Knob Noster, Missouri, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,622 miles (or 12,267 kilometers).
A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Buka Island Airport and Whiteman Air Force Base, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.
Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Buka Island Airport and Whiteman Air Force Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BUA / AYBK |
Airport Name: | Buka Island Airport |
Location: | Buka Island, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 5°25'19"S by 154°40'21"E |
Area Served: | Buka Island, Papua New Guinea |
Operator/Owner: | Government |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 11 feet (3 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BUA |
More Information: | BUA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SZL / KSZL |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Knob Noster, Missouri, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 38°43'49"N by 93°32'53"W |
View all routes: | Routes from SZL |
More Information: | SZL Maps & Info |
Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):
- The furthest airport from Buka Island Airport (BUA) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,781 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
- In January 1944, the Allies drove the Japanese out of Buka, and the airfield was used for operations against the Japanese over New Guinea.
- The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
- Today the airport is the primary air portal into Bougainville, and even 60 years after the war, wreckage from the military use of the airfield by the Japanese and Americans is easily found in the area.
- Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
- It is located at the southern end of the island, near Buka Passage behind the town of Buka, and pre-war Chinatown.
- Because of Buka Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Buka Island Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
Facts about Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL):
- Then came an announcement that would change Whiteman forever.
- In addition to being known as "Whiteman Air Force Base", another name for SZL is "Whiteman AFB".
- The Air National Guard 131st Bomb Wing and the active-duty 509th Bomb Wing have a unique relationship at Whiteman AFB, in that members of the two units work side-by-side on a daily basis, although the majority of the 131st Bomb Wing visits Whiteman only one weekend per month for drill.
- The closest airport to Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Sedalia Regional Airport (DMO), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of SZL.
- Construction on Whiteman continued throughout the 1950s.
- The furthest airport from Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,815 miles (17,405 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Named in honor of 2d Lieutenant George Allison Whiteman.
- Other aircraft assigned to Whiteman include the A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack fighter.